West Ham have made a late move to rival Crystal Palace in the pursuit of Swansea City's Flynn Downes.

The midfielder has been on the radar of several Premier League clubs and it had seemed that Palace had won the race to land the 23-year-old.

However, whilst they have a strong interest, they were yet to agree a fee for the player and the Athletic have revealed that the Hammers are now preparing to match whatever bid the Eagles lodge.

It had been claimed the Welsh side want around £12m for the defensive midfielder, with the offers coming their way currently £9m initially plus add-ons.

So, there is an expectation that a deal will be reached, with Downes then seemingly set to make a choice on his future.

Interestingly, Downes is a West Ham fan, having been born in Brentwood, so the chance to join the club he has supported may appeal to the former Ipswich Town man.

Either way, the report confirms that the Swans are 'resigned' to losing Downes, with Joe Allen expected to be brought in as his replacement.

The verdict

This will be a blow for Palace as it had seemed as though they were all set to get this done but they're now battling West Ham who can offer European football next season.

From Swansea's perspective, they will just want the fairly significant fee that's on the table and Martin will have targets in mind as he tries to reinvest.

So, it's now all on Downes to make his decision and you would expect movement on this in the next couple of days as his future becomes clearer.

Thoughts? Let us know in the comments below.